As a family dental office, we accept patients of all ages. This includes the youngest members of your family. Children should start to see the dentist by the time they’re a year old or within six months of the first tooth erupting. Primary teeth (baby teeth) are a crucial part of your child’s developing oral health. It’s key to take care of them the same way as permanent teeth.
At Coastal Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry, our dental team provides pediatric dental services in the Chesapeake, VA area. We use a compassionate approach to make sure children are comfortable in our office. When your child leaves our office, we want them to leave with a smile.
How to Keep Your Child Comfortable
Children are often more fearful of going to the dentist than adults. This is because they are not aware of the importance of dental care and they have a lot more to lose.
The best way to help children feel comfortable at the dentist is by making them feel like it’s a place where they can be themselves and have fun. One thing you can do is bring a toy or their favorite book with you to help them feel comfy in the waiting room. Your child will know that this is a place where they can just relax and enjoy themselves.
You can also get their consent before scheduling the appointment. They will feel like they have a say in what time of day they would like to come. It’s easy to make the dentist comfortable for children. Simply taking them along with you and making them feel loved will make all the difference in terms of their overall experience at the dentist office.
Fighting Tooth Decay
Tooth decay is the most prominent chronic problem in children. It can cause them to miss school and other events and can cost you time and extensive treatments. The best way to fight tooth decay is with preventative dental care. This means making sure your child is brushing and flossing at least twice a day, and taking them to the dentist for checkups twice a year.
At pediatric dentistry appointments, we teach both child and parent the best techniques for taking care of tiny teeth. Brushing and flossing in a child’s mouth is a bit different than it is for adults. Full oral exams can help to catch any dental problems early before they develop further. Finding tooth decay before you or your child may notice it can help make treatment conservative and easy.
Dental sealants are a preventative step that we recommend for children. They consist of a plastic resin material that our dentist paints on the back molars of a patient. The material is flexible and gets into the grooves of the molars where plaque and tartar are most likely to build up. Protection from sealants can last up to nine years, significantly lowering the risk of developing cavities in these teeth.
Catching Problems Early
Children’s mouths are constantly growing and changing. New teeth are coming in and teeth are shifting in the mouth. Regular dental visits allow us to monitor the changes over time. Using modern dental technology, we can catch tooth decay early. This helps us treat it in a more conservative way.
But we can also see if patients are going to need things like orthodontic treatment or wisdom teeth removal. As with tooth decay, treatment is easier if we catch issues early. As the permanent teeth come in, it’s important for a dentist to follow their position and determine if he needs to correct them. We want to make sure the bite comes together correctly and bite problems don’t cause further problems.
Children’s Dentistry In Chesapeake, Virginia
Starting children early also helps reduce the chance that they’ll develop dental anxiety. Many people have dental fear because of a bad experience at the dentist, particularly as a child. We want to make sure you both leave with smiles on your face. For pediatric dentistry you can trust, call us, or schedule an appointment online.